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Weber’s Theory of Radical Movements: A Reappraisal*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 August 2008

Andreas Pettenkofer
Andreas Pettenkofer*
Affiliation:
Fernuniversität Hagen [[email protected]].
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Abstract

The ongoing wave of radical religious protest confirms the need for analternative to the rationalist approach that has come to dominate socialmovement research. At this moment, it seems promising to take another look atWeber’s sociology of religion: it offers a theory which (1) proposesan unfamiliar account of the relation between personal identity and politicalactivism, (2) builds on this to explain the functioning of a specific type ofsocial movements organization, and (3) thereby identifies mechanisms causing adynamic of protest that cannot be reduced to a “rational”adaptation to an opportunity structure. These concepts can also elucidate theworking of movements that are not explicitly religious in character.

Résumé

L'apparition d'une contestation radicale à basereligieuse prouve le besoin d'une alternative aux théoriesrationalistes des mouvements sociaux. Le retour à la sociologie desreligions de Weber s'impose. Au delà du type charismatiqueil ouvre sur une compréhension des affirmations identitaires et del'activisme politique qui explique l'apparitiond'un type spécifique d'organisationcontestataire. Il s'agit de comprendre une dynamique de protestationirréductible à l'adaptation aux structures decirconstances. Extrapoler aux mouvements séculiers est possible.

Zusammenfassung

Das neue Phänomen eines radikalen religiösen Protestsbestätigt die Annahme, dass wir eine Alternative zu dengängigen rationalistischen Theorien sozialer Bewegungen brauchen.Hier ist es nützlich, noch einmal zu Webers Religionssoziologiezurückzukehren: Sie enthält eine – nicht aufThesen über “charismatische Führer”begrenzte – Theorie, die (1) ein anderes Verständnis desVerhältnisses von personaler Identität und politischemAktivismus entwickelt, (2) davon ausgehend den Aufbau eines spezifischen Typsvon Bewegungsorganisationen erklärt und (3) so zeigt, wie eineEigendynamik des Protests entstehen kann, die sich nicht auf eine Anpassung anGelegenheitsstrukturen reduzieren lässt. Damit hilft sie auch,Protestbewegungen zu erklären, die sich als säkularbegreifen.

Type
Creativity of social movements
Information
European Journal of Sociology / Archives Européennes de Sociologie , Volume 49 , Issue 2 , August 2008 , pp. 253 - 275
Copyright
Copyright © A.E.S. 2008

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